A man in his 60s has been jailed for the rape of an 11 year old girl who he raped over thirty years ago when she was staying at his Northfield home with her friend.
Now in her late 40s, the victim only found courage to tell police what had happened to her two years ago.
64 year old Michael Collins, now of Erdington, raped the girl twice while his wife and newborn baby slept in another room at their home in Northfield.
To prevent the girl from telling what had happened, Collins threatened her. He told her that he owned a gun and that if she told anyone what had happened, she would be taken into care.
Detective Constable Louise Ford, from the Public Protection Central Complex Team, said: “This woman has spent years struggling to cope with what happened to her as a child, but finally found the confidence to report it to us.
“The length of time that has elapsed since she was raped made no difference to how seriously we treated her report. It was fully investigated, with the result that Collins is now finally having to face up to the consequences of inflicting terrible suffering on an innocent child.
“I hope this case will give other victims confidence to come forward and report abuse to us, knowing that we will take them seriously and thoroughly investigate their allegations.”
Collins, was found guilty of two counts of rape at Birmingham Crown Court this morning (Tuesday 30 April) and sentenced to 17 years in prison. He has also been placed on the Sex Offender Register for life.
If you are a victim of historic abuse, please contact West Midlands Police on Live Chat at www.west-midlands.police.uk (8am – midnight) or to call 101 any time to report. Alternatively, contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or visit www.crimestoppers-uk.org
For further support, contact independent charity RSVP via their website, by email or call 0121 643 4136.
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